The popularity of roller skating has continued to grow in this country, and it is estimated by the Roller Skating Association that more than forty million Americans engage in roller skating. Roller skating safety is a paramount concern to both participants and skate providers. Roller skating injuries, while statistically lower and less significant than many team oriented sports like basketball and soccer, still occur at a fairly high frequency. Roughly 3 participants in a thousand will injure themselves to the extent that hospitalization is required. Moreover, many of the injured skaters are experience skaters. Below is a table of injuries sustained by inline roller skaters.
CHARACTERISTICS OF FALLS AND INJURIESSUSTAINED BY INLINE SKATERSCharacteristic% of SampleLocation of FallSidewalk or driveway26Street22Park or bike path19Indoors10Parking lot9Other14Proximate Cause of FallSpontaneous loss of balance41Striking a stationary hazard 140Striking a moving object 211Swerving to avoid hazard or collision4Other4Special Factors Pertaining to Fall 3Hazardous Road ConditionCited53Cited as key cause63Skating out of controlCited25Cited as key cause67Poor visibility (twilight or darkness)Cited17Cited as key cause6FatigueCited11Cited as key cause37Anatomical Site of Primary Injury 4Wrist32Lower leg (including ankle)13Face (or chin)12Elbow9Knee6Head5Other23Type of InjuryWrist fracture25Face or chin laceration10Wrist sprain6Elbow fracture5Lower-leg fracture5Ankle sprain4Severity of InjuryMajor51Minor49Safety Gear Worn at Time of InjuryWrist guards33Elbow pads28Knee pads45Helmet20All of the above gear7No gear46
The percentages are calculated for an estimated 6,331 persons treated in emergency departments nationally during the study period. They are based on data from 161 injured skaters, weighted according to the hospital in the NEISS sample in which they were treated.
As the statistics show, the cause of the injuries in many cases come from loss of balance or impact with a stationary object. Both of these conditions are related to a skater's speed, and the ability to brake safety when a hazardous situation arises. For that reason, there has been much work and research into safer braking systems, particularly for inline skates. Specifically, in most skate brakes, the skater must lift three wheels off the ground to make contact with a rear stopper on the back of the skate boot, causing instability in the skater.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,455,305 to Bellehumeur is directed to a skate brake particularly suited for an inline skate includes a braking carriage formed of left and right plates spaced apart by axles that support rollers thereon. The rollers engage the wheels of the skate when the carriage is maneuvered to the appropriate elevation, and the momentum of the wheels is arrested as a result of a frictional bearing of the rollers against the carriage surface. The carriage is raised and lowed by a rocker mounted below the skate and coupled to the carriage plates, where rotation of the rocker drives the plates and the carriage downward such that the rollers contact one or more wheels. The rocker is actuated by a linkage that includes a pushrod and a second rocker that is mounted to the skate boot, allowing the user to control the braking carriage by applying pressure to a rear location of the boot.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,264,091 to Bellehumeur is directed to a brake assembly for inline skates having a boot portion with right and left downwardly directed frame members. The frame members support at least three axles. Right and left carrier plates are positioned along an inner face of the downwardly directed frame members. At least two diabolos are supported by the right and left carrier plates. The diabolos each contact two wheels and are forced outwardly to provide a friction rubbing action against the carrier plates when the carrier plates have moved from a disengaged position to an engaged position.
While the skate brake art has shown advances over earlier braking systems, there is a constant striving to improve the overall effectiveness of the skate brake while minimizing wear on the brakes that result in premature replacement of wheels or other skate components. The present invention is directed to the goal of overall skate brake improvement.